Dragon Of The Night
by Dragonessa Smith
Summary: A different course of action Hermione could have taken about the Yule Ball.


A/N: Basically a new twist on one of my old ideas. If Hermione hadn't been asked to the Yule Ball...but instead of going alone, she takes things into her own hands...kinda. Took about ten minutes to write in the bathtub. Inspiration hits in the weirdest places sometimes. And it's really fluffy.  
  
  
I burst out of the common room. Ron could be so insensitive sometimes! Was the only thought in my head as I angrily recounting their whole conversation in my head even as I sped through the corridors.  
  
(A/N: This passage is quoted directly from the fourth book. Copy-wright JKR.)  
  
"Hermione, Neville's right-you *are* a girl..."  
  
"Oh well spotted."  
  
"Well-you can come with one of us!"  
  
"No, I can't!"  
  
"Oh come on, we need partners, we're going to look really stupid if we haven't got any, everyone else has..."  
  
"I can't come with you, because I'm already going with someone."  
  
No, you're not! You just said that to get rid of Neville!"  
  
"Oh *did* I? Just because it's taken you three years to notice, Ron, doesn't mean no one *else* has spotted I'm a girl!"  
  
"Okay, okay, we know you're a girl. That do? Will you come now?"  
  
"I've already told you! I'm going with someone else!"  
  
I started out towards the girl's stairs, but then I heard Ron say, "She's lying."  
  
"Not exactly." Ginny said quietly.  
  
(A/N: Back to original stuff.)  
  
Before she could go on, I shot a glare at Ginny, who fell quiet.   
  
"Ginny, I want to see the looks on their faces when they see us."   
  
"Can't blame you." Ginny grinned. One of the best things about Ginny, is that she'll play along with anything for me, no questions asked, even if I'm blowing smoke out of my ass. Like now.  
  
"Who are you going with, if you are going with someone?" Ron asked in a snotty voice.  
  
"Wouldn't you like to know?" I snapped. "In fact, I'm going to go confirm our plans for the ball!"  
  
And I stomped out of the room, having no idea where I was going. It was infuriating, the way Ron was right about most of these things.  
  
Since I had no where else to go, I thought I'd go to the library. But no, if Ron and them tried to find me, they'd go there first. So instead I headed down towards the grounds.  
  
As I was walking around, I decided to visit Hagrid. But he wasn't there. Looking around, I noticed there was an unusually large crowd of people by the Quidditch pitch. Especially too large for after dinner, when we're technically supposed to stay in the castle. I decide to check it out.  
  
Oh, they're getting ready to get rid of the dragons. Who I thought were a group of students were actually the trainers. Not that you can really train a dragon...There were a few students watching, but they were from Durmstrang and I didn't know them, so I just stood off to the side and watched.   
  
We were all standing on a slight incline so we could see the activity inside of the fences. I was watching at least a dozen wizards trying to hang onto the Horntail when I heard someone calling my name.  
  
"Hermione!" I turned from the Horntail and saw Charlie waving at me from inside one of the fences. I waved back. "Thought you would be with Ron and-"  
  
"Watch out!" I shouted. While he had been distracted, the Chinese Fireball he was supposed to be stupefying had broken free and was snorting flames all over the place.   
  
He pulled out his wand, but it was too late. The dragon's tail whipped around and caught him on the back, knocking him onto his knees. The dragon, ignoring the other trainers, bore down on him. He scrambled back until he hit the fence.   
  
"Charlie!" I screamed.   
  
"Charlie!" One of the other trainers yelled too. "Code red! Fire!"   
  
Instantly there were about thirty trainers pointing wands at the Chinese Fireball and shouting "Stupify!"   
  
It fell to the ground, it's head barely a foot away from Charlie's feet. He got up slowly, and cautiously edged his way around the fences towards the gate.  
  
I rushed down towards him, but a Mediwizard was already examining him.   
  
"Nothing broken or burned, Charlie?" When he shook his head, he started examining his back. "Bend over. Now twist from side to side. Anything hurt?"  
  
"I'm just a little sore, that's all." Charlie insisted.   
  
"I still want you to see Madame Pomfrey, just to get an okay."  
  
"Fine, fine." Charlie turned and saw me there. "Hey."  
  
"Charlie are you okay? I'm so sorry, I didn't-"  
  
"Woah!" He cut me off. "Chill out, Hermione, you didn't do anything. I was distracted, that's all."  
  
"Yeah, by me, though." I sniffled. "I feel-"  
  
"Hey, girl!" The Mediwizard called "If you feel so guilty about Charlie's short attention span, would you go with him to make sure he actually gets to the hospital wing this time?"  
  
Charlie unceremoniously flipped him off. "Thanks for your trust, Geoff."  
  
"Come on, Charlie, it wouldn't be the first time you've snuck off to visit your brothers. There was the memorable experience of a bathroom break that took two hours...what'd the twins need with a toilet seat anyway?"  
  
Charlie sighed as we walked away. "You mess up once, and they never let you forget it...So, why aren't you off somewhere with Ron and Harry getting attacked by something?"  
  
I meant to say something like 'Oh, I wanted to see the dragons.' or something like that. Really. But instead, our whole conversation flooded out of my mouth.   
  
"...and so I told him I was already going with someone, but I'm not, and now I'm going to look like an idiot when I show up alone." I cried. Madame Pomfrey was busy at the moment, so Charlie was lying on one of the beds waiting.  
  
"At least you'll be going." Charlie grumbled. "They never had any dances or anything at Hogwarts when I was here."  
  
"Wish I had gone to school during that time." I muttered. "This whole thing is just causing problems."  
  
"Yeah, well, I'd still rather have a few fights with my friends, and actually get to go to something like that." Charlie crossed his arms over his chest and sighed.  
  
"I just wish there was someone I could go with, just like, as a friend." I sighed too, barely listening to him.  
  
"I wish I had some way to go."   
  
I froze, looked up at him, and said, "What?"  
  
"I wish I had some way to..." Charlie's voice faded out as a look of enlightenment dawned on his face. "Hermione? Are you thinking, what I'm thinking?"  
  
"Do you think you can get off work-"  
  
"I'm sure of it. Do you think Dumbledore will-"  
  
"I'm sure of it." I threw my arms around his neck. "Thank you so much, Charlie."  
  
He hugged me back. "No, thank you."  
  
  
"Wow, Ginny, you look really great." Harry smiled.  
  
"Thanks." Ginny blushed.  
  
"Has anyone seen Hermione?" Ron asked. When no one in the common room answered, he grinned. "I knew it. I'll bet she's hiding in her room. She didn't really have a date, did she Gin?"  
  
"Oh, she already left." Ginny grinned right back. "She's meeting her date downstairs."  
  
Ron turned a funny shade of green. "Are you serious? Maybe she's just in the library-"  
  
"Oh, there you all are!" Parvati cried, fighting her way across the crowded common room. "Come on, we need to go meet Padma, or we're going to be late."  
  
  
Thanks to a switching staircase and Neville getting stuck in an invisible step, they were late anyway. Most everyone had already gone inside, and a very red-faced Harry and Parvati had to sneak out onto the dance floor with the rest of the champions.  
  
After the first dance and the dinner, they met up with Ron and Padma again.  
  
Ron opened his mouth to say something about how McGonagall's face looked when she saw them duck in, but what came out was "Oh, no." Fleur Delacour and Roger Davies had just walked past. He ducked behind Padma, who didn't exactly look happy.   
  
"That was close." Ron muttered, coming out from behind Padma once they'd gone.  
  
"No, that's close." Harry gaped, pointing at the dance floor. Ron, Padma, and Parvati followed his finger.  
  
"Oh my god, Ron, is that..." Parvati and Padma started at the same time.  
  
"Charlie?" Ron rubbed his eyes, but they were still there.  
  
Hermione and Charlie were dancing in the middle of the crowd. Charlie was easy enough to spot, he was a couple of inches taller than even the tallest seventh year. Hermione, who had always been slightly taller than average, was resting her head a little below his shoulders, and his arms were wrapped tightly around her waist.  
  
"I don't believe it...Ginny!" Ron caught her sleeve as she and Neville walked past. "Is what I'm seeing really what I'm seeing?"  
  
Ginny glanced out onto the floor. "Yeah, it's really her and Charlie." She said, unperturbed. "Maybe next time you shouldn't take so long to ask her." 


End file.
